


Something Else

by meesherbeans



Series: Always Waiting for You [3]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: F/M, Internal Conflict, Light Angst, Short One Shot, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-29
Updated: 2017-08-29
Packaged: 2018-12-21 07:00:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11938779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meesherbeans/pseuds/meesherbeans
Summary: **MAJOR SPOILERS FOR CRISIS ON UMBARA**Meila was left reeling after the recent mission to Umbara but, at least for now, she refuses to give up.





	Something Else

_I don't expect you to understand. But however this ends, I just want you to know that I loved you from the moment I saw you. And I always will._

The softly glowing words had to have been seared into her vision at this point, given how long Meila spent re-reading it. It didn't really matter how many times she read it, though: something just didn't sit right.

Everything was…off. She put the datapad down, replaying the last week over and over in her mind. What clues were there? Was he acting any differently, did he say anything that could've even remotely hinted at this plan? There had to be something. Anything.

Theron wouldn't have done this. Not without a real cause. Not without reason. He really _wouldn't_ have.

Lana told her that she just needed some time, some space to come to terms with what happened on Umbara; to accept that Theron really did betray them. That even if he did love her like he said he did, now he was a traitor who tried to kill her. But Meila couldn't shake the sense that it went deeper than what he said. Monologues weren't even his style…

She and Theron had spent countless nights, staying up late and talking about ways to just…end the war. Really end it. He knew she hated being a figurehead, a leader of war. Sure, she was good at it, but she had never taken pleasure in power or violence. She wanted it over with as much as he did, and he _knew_ that. It had to be something else.

Her eyes drifted back to the datapad with his last message from her. Even the title sent her stomach into anguished turmoil. One of the last things he said to her before they left was, "I'd do anything to protect you." Despite his deadly serious tone, at the time, she took it as the veiled declaration of love that they liked to throw back and forth on occasion… But now…

Meila rolled over to his side of the bed, burying her face in his pillow. Tears immediately surged, soaking the pillow's cover; it still smelled like him. Just last night, he was right here, arms around her. He wouldn't do this to her, not really. It had to be something else.

That would explain how Lana wasn't killed when she blocked the bolt aimed at Meila. It would explain why Theron, a crack shot, missed her repeatedly but instead hit a vital escape route – the window. It would definitely explain why he left behind just enough crystals for the Alliance to keep going. And it'd explain the letter she'd read dozens of times already.

If she was proven wrong down the line, so be it. She'd deal with that then. But for now, Meila had to hold on to the hope that all of the small things that didn't add up ended up pointing to Theron not really betraying her. As she hugged his pillow tightly, the promise he made to her years ago came to mind.

_I'll always be with you, following you, waiting for you, whatever you need._

She'd be waiting for him this time.

Always.


End file.
